h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

There's big talk about whether the Patriots will go unbeaten etc, etc. But who cares. What I'm interested in is will the Dolphins go for the Imperfect season? Will they beat Tampa's 0-14 season perhaps heading into the realms of breaking the 26-game losing streak? You saw it asked here first ...

BBS

As bad as the Phins offense is, their defense is good enough to give them a chance to win games anyway. They came very close against Cincy. With two shots at an awful Bills team and another against a crappy 49ers team, they're practically a lock for one win and a good bet for two.

This is what passes for optimism among Miami fans right now.

How far does that optimism stretch for the game against the Cardinals?

a) Will the Patriots go undefeated? No. Their 4-0 record has been achieved against teams with a combined 5-14 record. Their division is one of the worst in the NFL. Someone, sometime will beat them. I just hope it's the 'Hawks.

b) Will the Phins go winless? No chance. Like BTM says, the Bills are apalling and the 49ers are worse. If any team in the NFL is going winless this year its Ericksons totally toothless 49ers.

As for this week the pats should win. I hope to lose points on both of these two at some point in fantasy football.

Just to be different, I've got a feeling that this may be the end of the Pats streak.
The Hawks threw away a silly game last week by losing concentration - I think that this week they won't slip up like that again

I also want Arsenal's streak to end they are becoming more intolerable than Man United supporters.

It may or may not be the Hawks that beats the Patriots streak. I merely hope it is, and think that we have the ability to do it.

All the Patriot fans I've read on the message boards certainly recognize that despite an appalling last ten minutes of football against Les Mouflons the Hawks remain a potent side that in Shaun Alexander have a weapon that can do them real damage.

As Wildman said, we beat ourselves. Some lapses of concentration and some ridiculous play calling (7 man blitz on third down, a pass when a run which would have ended the game, positive yardage or no) cost us the game. I doubt Holmgren and Rhodes will make the same mistakes again.

Question answered. But a new question arises... how bad a coach is Mike Martz to be so horribly outcoached by Whinestedt?

In Mike's defense, at this point Dave had nothing left to lose...

Without word of a lie ... I always felt the Fins were going to win this game. When I was doing my predictions I initially selected them and when I applied my attention realised that was the most ridiculous thing ever ... or not as the case might be.

When I tuned into the game and they were 7-0 up, then 14-7 up it just looked like it was always going to be their day.

BBS

So of course it must be time to set a new puzzle.

Will the 'Hawks recover from this slump, which has left even Holmgren admitting that they are playing without confidence, to reach the play-offs, or is this the end of the line for the walrus and his west coast offence in the big wet north-west?

It's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but it's what I have: somebody has to win that division.

The Niners and Cards just don't have the talent. The Rams just lost to the Dolphins. As creatively as the Seahawks are losing right now, they're still the best bet to win the division.

Koren Robinson's suspension could turn out to be fortuitous, as his dropped passes are one of the biggest problems on the offense. The line is doing a good job and the other skill players are making plays, but these drops are killing drive after drive.

Defensively, I honestly cannot understand what is happening over there. They seem to be able to dominate and get schooled, with no discernible pattern that I can see. Talent-wise they seem fine, and though they may have played over their heads at times they are certainly not such a bad team that they should be getting killed by the Rams in the 4th quarter or giving up 100 yards to Decrepit Smith.

I must admit that that kind of sums up the way i feel about it at the moment. I think Ray Rhodes has to take some responsibility for the loss to Les Mouflons, but overall we still look the 'quality' of the division. Certainly we have a strange last ten weeks;

Carolina, @San Francisco, @St Louis, Miami, Buffalo, Dallas, @Minnesota, @New York Jets, Arizona, Atlanta

Now Idon't like the thought of travelling to the Rollerdome, or to New Jersey but otherwise thats far from the worst schedule out there...

After I wrote that yesterday, I looked at the Seahawks' team page on ESPN and found that their defense is thinned by injuries to the linebacking corps. So there is hope. If they can get their linebackers healthy, and if Jerry Rice can catch what Koren Robinson can't, then they can put together a solid run and close out the division, moving on to the playoffs where they would get killed.